If you have cats, follow cat blogs, do any cat research, read stories and information about cats, you probably already know that September is Happy Cat Month. And your burning question might be how can you tell when your cat is happy? Oh you know. If you’ve had cats for any length of time, you know when your cat is happy and contented. Here are a few clues:
- She is kneading and purring.
- Her eyes are wide open and her mouth is closed and
relaxed. - Her whiskers are pointed outward and do not look stressed.
- She may be looking at you longingly.
- She is relaxed or she is at play. A happy cat plays like no one is watching.
Does your cat seem bored? There are ways to increase her sense of happiness. Try these:
- Provide one-on-one quiet time with her. Soooo nice for you both.
- Introduce a new toy or one that she hasn’t seen in a while. Exciting!
- Create regular play sessions as well as spontaneous play.
- And don’t forget the snuggles and petting and treats.
Hey, this sounds a little like every day of the year with your cat, doesn’t it? Keep up the good work and you’ll enjoy a happy-happy cat.
Sunday, August 28 is Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day—a day to celebrate beloved pets that have have crossed over the Rainbow Bridge.
They say there’s nothing new under the sun, but we all know that isn’t entirely true. For today’s blog post I decided to go in search of unique ideas and products for cats. The first thing I stumbled across had me in stitches, and it was like a, “Why didn’t I think of that, moment.” Here it is, folks—walking your cat in a tote bag. Check it out: 
single-pawedly thwarting a couple of real bandits from entering his home with a gun and a crowbar. Yep, Bandit caused such a raucous trying to get his owner’s attention that he was able to chase the potential robbers away before anyone got hurt or anything got taken. 
much.
We put treats among her toys to give her a challenge with a reward. We have brought out toys she hasn’t seen in a while, and we’re creating new games and new ways to play with some of those toys. We also lay her cat tree on the side occasionally, to give her something different to think about and explore. Is it working? It seems to be. It’s
wonderful to watch her express so much joy when she gets involved in a game with us or just independent play.
If you read my Klepto Cat and/or Calico Cat Mystery series, you know how much fun I have using cat-related terms in my titles and coming up with interesting cat names. I thought it would be fun to talk about our cat names and what inspires them.
showed up on her doorstep (despite the fact that she has three large dogs). When she’d touch the kitten, he would purr, thus his eventual name, Purrsy. Other cat-related descriptive names might include Whiskers, Bootsie (Boots, Socks), 
Mittens, Miss Kitty, Puss, Tom, Leo.
—Butterscotch—Pumpkin, Stripey, Smokey, snowflake. We might choose names from a cat character, Garfield, Nala, Simba, Felix. Or we just use a name we like the sound of—Daisy, Katy, Max. I thought our tortie had an old-fashioned look to her and I gave her an old-fashioned-sounding name—Sophie. One 
cat we rescued from a shelter came with the same name as a cat we already had—Katy. That wasn’t going to work, so we needed to rename her, even though she was already six-months old.
Today is Black Cat Appreciation Day. Why do we need to be reminded to appreciate black cats? I think we all know that black cats and kittens are generally the last to be adopted and they come with a reputation for bringing bad luck. Black cats are portrayed at Halloween and in many popular movies and animated
films as villains. And if you don’t think this has scarred the reputation of the black cat, you have another think coming.
You should also know that, in some cultures, black cats are thought to bring good luck. Sailors often took black cats with them on their boats to assure a good fishing trip. Some say that a black cat visiting your property is a sign of good luck and prosperity. As an aside, there was a time 
when we’d suddenly discover evidence of a gopher in our yard. Soon after, a black cat would show up. It wasn’t long before the black cat and the gopher were both gone. This occurred several times over many years almost like clockwork and we never knew where that black cat came from.
cats. The owners encourage guests to come in and familiarize themselves with the allure and beauty of black cats.
delight.
We recently lost a regal tortie just days before her 18th birthday. Olivia is now the only cat for the first time in her life. How is she managing? She still seems to be looking for Sophie and watching for her to walk down the hall to join us in the living room each evening. She
appears to wait for her to enter my bedroom first thing in the morning and participate with us in my morning stretches like she has done ever since Olivia can remember. And Olivia is incredibly more affectionate and clingy since Sophie left us.
much, they counted on each other in some ways. They had become comfortable with the familiarity of each other’s habits and they seemed to rely on each other for some level of companionship. Sophie was always the one to ask for food. Olivia just tagged 
along for the ride. Sophie showed Olivia the way to the cheese treat—“when you hear that cheese package come out of the fridge you hot-foot it into the kitchen and mew until you get a few shreds.”
Do cats ever lose the kitten within?
the remaining cat. For example, I thought Olivia was the exuberant litter box user—the one who kicked and tracked litter everywhere. I had to sweep up piles of it every day. Not anymore. Evidently it was our petite queenly cat, Sophie, having fun in the litter box.
Do you have a marmalade cat—an orange tabby? I had one once many years ago, and I’ve known several. Most of them were sweet cats, except for one that crossed my path a few years ago. His name was Rocket. Was he 
ever a bad boy. They say that the orange male is larger than other male cats and the orange female is smaller than typical. Well, Rocket was a petite marmalade male—
and he was ornery and downright mean. “Pet me,” he’d say, displaying a friendly demeanor. Then he’d attack viciously when you’d attempt to touch him. He broke into a neighbor’s 
windows and assaulted the oldest, weakest cat inside 
the house. He was awful and we were glad to see him leave the neighborhood when his family moved.
that I thought you might like to read. The link follows. The findings include the belief that orange cats, for the most part, are friendlier and more affectionate than most. Have you found this to be true? Orange cats are more apt to display risky behavior. That’s an interesting concept. Most orange cats are males. And I thought this was interesting: orange cats have greater reproductive success in rural, unpopulated areas. Does that have something to do with the fact that they are so kickback and don’t thrive in a busy city? Here’s the site.
Yes, there’s a new book on the block. This one I produced while on the move—we’re just back from a 10-day road trip to Texas. Then we stayed three days in San Diego and attended a very special 101st birthday party. I also spent four beautiful days with my three girls for my birthday in June. So I’m afraid I haven’t been quite as prolific with my writing this year. However, Book 58 is now ready for your reading pleasure. Here’s what you’re in for with this story.
Yes, another cat holiday. I went on a search to find out how many cat “holidays” there are and I learned that there are MANY. Some of them are combined into “pet” holidays, including all pets, but there are still dozens throughout the year related just to cats.
this is the day set aside for us to worship the most popular pet on the planet—the cat. Yeah, that’s about right.
How do they recommend celebrating? Donate to your favorite cat charity. Check—I did that. Give your cat an extra treat or scratch behind the ear. Yup! And donate blankets, food, toys to a shelter near you. If you have room in your home and your heart, you might adopt a homeless cat or kitten.
